Flight Safety Information
February 3, 2017 - No. 026
In This Issue
Diamond DA20 Collides with Wind Turbine (Germany)
Incident: PIA B773 near Dammam on Feb 2nd 2017, battery thermal runaway
Los Angeles-bound flight makes emergency landing in not-so-balmy Iqaluit
Nearly 50 per cent rise in air safety violations by crew in 2016: DGCA (India)
Nigeria: Sustaining a Zero Air Accident Record
Mitsubishi Aircraft changes leadership following latest MRJ delay
'SMALL DRONE' RESEARCH
University Research Study
ESASI SEMINAR 2017 - LJUBLJANA, SLOVENIA
Diamond DA20 Collides with Wind Turbine (Germany)
Date:
02-FEB-2017
Time:
12:40 LT
Type:
Diamond DA20-A1 Katana
Owner/operator:
SFC Melle-Grönegau e.V.
Registration:
D-EJAR
C/n / msn:
10133
Fatalities:
Fatalities: 1 / Occupants: 1
Other fatalities:
0
Airplane damage:
Written off (damaged beyond repair)
Location:
Melle, near Osnabrück - Germany
Phase:
Nature:
Private
Departure airport:
Melle-Grönegau (EDXG)
Destination airport:
Narrative:
The aircraft collided with a wind turbine and impacted the ground. The pilot was killed.
Sources:
https://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/wiki.php?id=193236
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Incident: PIA B773 near Dammam on Feb 2nd 2017, battery thermal runaway
A PIA Pakistan International Airlines Boeing 777-300, registration AP-BID performing flight PK-742 from Jeddah (Saudi Arabia) to
Islamabad (Pakistan), was enroute at FL350 near Dammam (Saudi Arabia) when the battery of a mobile phone (Q Mobile) suffered a
thermal runaway. Cabin Crew immediately intervened, cooled the battery down and put it into a safe container. The flight crew
continued the flight to Islamabad for a safe landing.
The Aviation Herald received information, that it remained unclear whether it was the internal battery of the smartphone or an
external battery pack. An investigation into the occurrence is under way.
http://avherald.com/h?article=4a45e01b&opt=0
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Los Angeles-bound flight makes emergency landing in not-so-balmy Iqaluit
A Swiss Air flight comes in for a landing at Iqaluit Airport in Nunavut on Feb.1, 2017.
CORRECTION: Due to an editing error an earlier version of this article stated the stranded passengers
went on a tour of Iqaluit. A tour was planned, but not conducted. The article has been updated to reflect
that change.
A Los Angeles-bound flight - the city was a balmy 21 degrees - suddenly found itself diverted instead
Wednesday to Iqaluit - a frigid, and somewhat ironic, minus 21.
The Boeing 777, which can hold up to 295 passengers, landed smoothly, but then had difficulty turning
around. There were no injuries.
The Swiss International Air Lines flight from Zurich should have flown over the southern tip of Greenland,
Hudson's Bay, Ontario and Manitoba on its way to the western United States. Instead, it was forced to
make an emergency landing in Nunavut's capital due to what the airline called a "technical irregularity."
"The real issue was they only had one engine, but despite that it was a smooth landing," said Iqaluit
airport director John Hawkins.
"Would you believe me if I told you the plane I was in lost an engine and now I'm stuck in the middle of
the North Pole?," Los Angeles-based singer-songwriter Leroy Sanchez said in a tweet.
Initially Sanchez and the other jet-setting passengers suddenly stranded in the high Arctic in February
were going to get a tour of the city.
"Everyone's fine and they are being detained. They will be given a tour of the community, fed, and a
replacement airplane is being sent to pick them up so they will not be staying overnight," Iqaluit Mayor
Madeleine Redfern told the National Post.
Redfern wasn't sure what would be included on the tour, but Hawkins said the museum and the swimming
pool were two places he'd suggest.
"Iqaluit is a spectacular place, they only have a few hours so there's no way they'll see it all," said
Hawkins.
A replacement airplane was sent from New York to pick them up "so they will not be staying overnight,"
said Redfern Wednesday evening. Although the exact number of passengers was not released, 295 people
would increase Iqaluit's population of 6,699 by more than four per cent.
In the end there was no tour of Iqaluit, the passengers stayed on the airplane until a replacement flight
from New York picked them up.
"It's really too bad there was a change of plan, it would have been nice for passengers to experience
Iqaluit-outside the plane," Redfern told Nunavut newspaper Nunatsiaq News.
It's a good thing there was no plan to have them stay overnight because "there aren't enough nearly
enough hotel rooms. There's a recreational hall we could put people in if we had to," said Hawkins.
http://news.nationalpost.com/news/canada/los-angeles-bound-flight-makes-emergency-landing-in-not-so-
balmy-iqaluit
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Nearly 50 per cent rise in air safety violations by crew in 2016: DGCA (India)
DGCA said Jet Airways along with its subsidiary JetLite had the highest number of enforcement actions
(116) followed by SpiceJet and Air India with 101 and 61 instances of safety breach, respectively.
Safety violations Indian Aviations industry, Indian Aviation, Safety violation by airline operators, Safety
violations news, International Civil Aviation Organisation, ICAO, International news, World news, India
news, national news, India news, International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), the UN aviation
monitoring body, is scheduled to carry out a comprehensive audit of India's aviation safety audit. Last time
ICAO had conducted such an audit in 2015.
There were 422 air safety violations by the crew of various air operators in 2016, a rise of nearly 50 per
cent from 2015, resulting in de-rostering of 42 pilots besides suspension of 272 crew members, DGCA said
on Friday. As per latest data available with the aviation regulator, there were safety violations involving
422 crew members of various air operators including scheduled airlines in 2016 as against 275 in 2015
and 391 in 2014.
Significantly, International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO), the UN aviation monitoring body, is
scheduled to carry out a comprehensive audit of India's aviation safety audit. Last time ICAO had
conducted such an audit in 2015.
Air services-wise data for 2016 shows the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) initiated 422
enforcement actions which include 272 suspensions of crew members and de-rostering of 42 pilots. In
addition, 108 crew members were let off after issuing warnings.
According to DGCA, private carrier Jet Airways along with its subsidiary JetLite had the highest number of
enforcement actions (116) initiated against its crew. It was followed by SpiceJet and Air India with 101
and 61 instances of safety breach, respectively.
The number of enforcement action against IndiGo stood at 55. SpiceJet reported the highest number of
suspensions (68) in the previous year, followed by Jet Airways (53) while 41 pilots and cabin crew
members of IndiGo also faced suspensions for various air safety violations.
http://indianexpress.com/article/india/nearly-50-per-cent-rise-in-air-safety-violations-by-crew-in-2016-
dgca-4505993/
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Nigeria: Sustaining a Zero Air Accident Record
In the past three years Nigeria has not recorded any air accident involving civil or commercial airlines.
Chinedu Eze spoke to industry experts who proffered measures on how this feat can be sustained.
One of the achievements recorded by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), according to its
Director-General, Captain Muhtar Usman, who addressed journalists on Monday, was that 2016 was the
third year Nigeria has not recorded any accident in civil aviation.
The last air crash recorded in the country was on October 3, 2013; when Associated Aviation Flight 361 on
domestic charter from Lagos to Akure, Ondo state crashed on take-off.
Nigeria was almost recording air accident every year, which peaked in 2005 and 2006 but there was
interlude until March 2008, when Wings Aviation aircraft, Beechcraft 1900D disappeared on its way to Bebi
airstrip in Cross River state and four years later the tragic Dana Air crash with 163 fatalities on June 3,
2012.
The period between 2008 and 2012 might be the longest so far in recent times that Nigeria maintained
clean slate in air accident. But many in the industry believe that Nigeria will meet that record of four years
by June this year and surpass it with a determination to ensure no civil aviation aircraft is involved in
accident.
So many things had happened since the last accident on October 3, 2013. What has become discernible is
that the airlines have taken it as a huge responsibility to ensure that their aircraft are airworthy; it does
not matter whether the regulatory authority is monitoring or not. The airlines have also realised that if
there is an accident involving one airline, the other operators will suffer huge losses because passengers
will dessert the airports.
Self-Regulation
After the Association Aviation flight crash, the NCAA drummed it home to the airlines that it is their
responsibility to ensure that the aircraft they operate are airworthy. In human lives and in monetary
terms, the airlines know that an accident may put to an end their existence and those who in the past cut
corners or contemplated cutting corners have realised that they will carry the can when accident occurs.
But there are two other factors that have inspired airlines to ensure they fly safely. One is the ministerial
meeting among African nations in Abuja, after the Dana Air crash, where it was declared that by December
2017, all African airlines must have the International Air Transport Association (IATA) Operational Safety
Audit (IOSA) before they would be allowed to continue to operate. That is the well-known Abuja
Declaration.
As a corollary to that, IATA took it up to assist Nigerian airlines to become IOSA certified and when the
first two airlines became IOSA certified, others lined up and strived to meet the stringent conditions to
become certified. Today only very few of commercial airlines are yet to be certified. So there are safety,
economic and goodwill factors that force airlines to abide by safety standard.
Tendency to cut corners
The airlines face huge temptation to cut corners because they are finding it extremely difficult to obtain
foreign exchange to fund their operations. The Chief Executive Officer of Medview Airline, Alhaji Muneer
Bankole said that even with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) window given for easy access of forex to
airlines, the operators still face difficulty obtaining funds because it takes about three to four months for
them to access dollars in exchange of the naira given to the apex bank. In that interim their aircraft may
suffer bird strike, which would prompt engine replacement, the landing gear may need to be changed, new
tyres may need to be purchased and they lose huge revenues having their aircraft on ground.
Besides, due to the low value of the naira, airlines spend more than double the amount of money they
spent in the past to purchase spares they bought at far cheaper price about two years ago and this
becomes very difficult because they sell their tickets in naira and buy spares and other services, including
insurance in dollars.
The series of air crashes that have taken place in Nigeria has become a huge source of fear to air
travellers, to the extent that some Nigerians who can afford to travel locally by air chose to use other
means of transport because of the fear of accident. THISDAY learnt from operators that passengers tend
to exaggerate or distort issues concerning safety because of the ingrained of accident; that a little noise
from aircraft that seemed usual could send panic among passengers that have already boarded flights and
they would struggle to de-board.
"There is almost traditional suspicion between passengers and airline operators. Anything you tell the
passengers they accept it with a pinch of salt. They suspect everything you say and do not believe that
you are sincere. I recall one day breeze was rotating the blades of the engine of our aircraft because of the
way it was parked. The sound of the engine blades turning stirred fear in the passengers. One of them
entered the aircraft and told the passengers that the aircraft was not safe. Immediately half of the
passengers stood up and wanted to jump out of the aircraft," an operator told THISDAY.
Critical Factors
To sustain the zero accident record, self regulate by airlines is very crucial, while NCAA continues with its
oversight functions. n
The Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer of Medview Airline, Lookman Animashaun, told
THISDAY at the weekend that certain actions must be taken to ensure the sustenance of the airlines and
government has a big role to play in order to realise this.
If you own a home, you should read this. Thousands of homeowners did this yesterday, and banks are
furious! Do this now before it's...
"The problem we have now is the foreign exchange situation in Nigeria. Now even if we are carrying
passengers, how much is that ticket you are selling? You don't have the money and the CBN does not have
the foreign exchange to give to you. You have to go to the black market to get the foreign exchange from
the sale of the ticket and you are buying this foreign exchange from the black market, most of the gains
and the profit you have acquired along the line are being eroded. It is a problem and government should
do something about it.
"For the airlines to thrive and survive in this country, government must come out with a policy to save the
industry. I am not saying that for Med-View but the industry. It is not only the airlines, even the regulator;
it also needs enough foreign exchange to be able to put infrastructure in place. Government should come
out now to address that issue. The country is going aground gradually and nobody is talking about it. If
aviation industry should continue this way, before the end of this year we only need prayer and God's
guidance to be able to get us through this year and I believe we will try our best, we would continue to
pray. What we need now is to strengthen our corporate governance and safety record to be able to move
ahead and we should be able to do that," he said.
Maintenance Repair and Overhaul
Chairman of Air Peace, Chief Allen Onyema said the country needs Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul
facility, noting that it is very critical for the airlines and not only that it would curb the huge funds Nigerian
airlines spend overseas; it will also reduce the pressure on forex. In addition, Onyema noted that it would
be a money-spinning project for Nigeria because all the aircraft in West, Central Africa and other areas
would be bringing their aircraft to be maintained in the facility and they, of course would pay in foreign
exchange. This would generate enormous revenue for Nigeria. Industry operators had canvassed that
government should facilitate it by providing enabling environment for its establishment by the private
sector.
While it is said that about 40 to 50 percent of cost of operation is spent on aviation fuel (it has risen to 80
percent in Nigeria due to high cost of aviation fuel), the second huge expense by airlines is cost of
maintenance; which is done largely overseas at high cost of foreign exchange. So for Nigerian airlines,
humongous amount of money in foreign exchange is spent on maintenance, engagement of expatriate
skilled manpower, including pilots, engineers, schedulers and others.
Ferrying the aircraft overseas for maintenance constitutes another challenge and more expenses, including
allowances paid to pilots, hotel accommodation, fuelling and airport charges. So it will cost the airlines far
less if they could carry out major maintenance of their aircraft locally, but there is no big maintenance
facility in Nigeria.
The Managing Director of the Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) and former CEO of Aero
Contractors Company of Nigeria Limited, Captain Fola Akinkuotu once gave presentation on the huge
expenses Nigerian airlines incur in maintaining their aircraft overseas.
Akinkuotu said the biggest 'killer' of airlines in Nigeria is this huge costs associated with C- Checks.
"This is because most airlines are unable to pay for the checks and eventually abandon the aircraft at the
foreign MROs which usually refuse to release the aircraft to the airlines until all invoices are settled. You
may want to ask if the airlines don't know of the costs before sending out their aircraft in the first place.
The truth is that in the agreement, the MRO may charge a very attractive standard C- Check fee of $500,
000. But when the aircraft gets to the facility and the actual work begins and panels are opened, there are
usually findings, which are beyond the quoted cap that must be rectified. This is where the huge difference
comes in that dramatically raises the final C check cost.
"On the domestic front, our Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) in its wisdom has imposed a calendar
limit for a C- Check at every 18 months and depending on the scope of work to be performed, an average
C- check costs $1million. By today's exchange rate of N395/1US$, this can be said to be conservatively
N395 million per aircraft every 18 months (it is now far higher with the continuous fall of the naira). 60
percent to 70 percent of this cost is labour costs while the balance is the cost of parts and engineering
services associated with the C-Check," Akinkuotu had said.
NCAA Agenda
So it is imperative that for Nigerian airlines to be able to sustain the zero accident record there must be
maintenance facility or facilities established in Nigeria.
NCAA on Monday while beating its chest on its achievements identified ways it could sustain the zero
accident record. The Director-General during the media briefing said the regulatory authority would
increase its safety oversight, have wider and more regular surveillance, introduce more stringent
enforcement and apply appropriate sanctions on erring airlines.
NCAA said it would review and strengthen economic regulation, which would become "much more far
reaching" and the airlines operational books would be sighted with increased regularity.
It is hoped that with increased stringent oversight measures and strict self-regulation of the airlines,
Nigeria would join the countries that have spent decades without any major accident involving commercial
airliners.
http://allafrica.com/stories/201702030408.html
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Mitsubishi Aircraft changes leadership following latest MRJ delay
Mitsubishi Aircraft Corp. parent company Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) has installed two of its
executives at the top of the leadership structure of its subsidiary producing the MRJ, the Japanese regional
jet that has been beset by multiple program delays.
Mitsubishi Aircraft president Hiromichi Morimoto will retire March 31, Mitsubishi Aircraft said in a message
to journalists detailing personnel changes. Morimoto, who had been Mitsubishi Aircraft's top executive
since April 2015, will be replaced by Hisakazu Mizutani, who is currently the president and CEO of MHI's
Integrated Defense & Space Systems business. Mizutani will become Mitsubishi Aircraft president April 1.
Mitsubishi Aircraft also said Yuichi Shinohara, an MHI SVP who holds the title of MHI deputy head of
business strategy and senior GM and VP-Commercial Aviation & Transportation Systems, will become
Mitsubishi Aircraft CEO, effective immediately.
The changes come following the latest delay to the MRJ program-the pushing back of first delivery of the
MRJ90 to Japan's All Nippon Airways (ANA) from mid-2018 to mid-2020, meaning first delivery will be
nearly seven years later than what was planned in the program's original timetable.
Mitsubishi Aircraft VP and GM-sales and marketing Yugo Fukuhara said during a conference call after the
latest delay was announced that MHI would be "more involved in the MRJ business" going forward.
http://atwonline.com/manufacturers/mitsubishi-aircraft-changes-leadership-following-latest-mrj-delay
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'SMALL DRONE' RESEARCH
I'm conducting a research project on small Visual Line-of-Sight (VLOS) remotely-piloted aircraft
(RPA)/Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) operations. I have a background as an aeroplane, helicopter and
small RPA pilot. The project is investigating cue utilization in operating a small (up to 2kg gross weight)
VLOS rotary-wing or multi-rotor drone. If you are 18 years or over and have any experience operating a
small drone for recreational or professional purposes, you are invited to participate in the study. If you
would like to participate, you will be asked to complete an on-line protocol which involves a consent form,
demographic questionnaire and the small VLOS drone version of EXPERTise 2.0, a situational judgement
test. The study takes approximately 30 minutes to complete.
You will need to complete the study using a desktop computer or laptop/notebook with at least a 17 inch
monitor or screen. The preferred internet browser for completing the study is Google Chrome. Firefox and
Safari are also suitable.
To access the study, please go the following website:
https://expertise.mq.edu.au/Participant/Account/Login
The access details for the study are:
Organisation code: Small Drone 2
Project: Small drone Study 2b 2017
Participants who complete the study will go into a draw to win an iPad mini 4.
If you have any questions, please contact me at renshawp@hotmail.com or Prof Mark Wiggins at
mark.wiggins@mq.edu.au
Thank you for your interest.
Peter Renshaw
Macquarie University
Sydney, Australia
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RESEARCH STUDY
Dear Participants,
You are being requested to participate in a research study on the use of controlled rest in position. This
study is expected to take approximately 5 minutes of your time. In order to participate, you must be at
least a student pilot and at least 18 years old. Participation in this study is voluntary, and you may choose
to opt out of the study at any time. The study is looking for consumers, student pilots, and airline pilots
complete this short questionnaire. We appreciate your consideration and time to complete our study.
Please click on or copy and paste the URL below:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSc2n9UeQunUJMvYPuTegn-
t9mjxmxLMGLAX0qblfZmi2apQ8w/viewform
For more information, please contact:
Dr. Scott Winter
swinter@fit.edu
We appreciate your interest and participation!
Dr. Scott R. Winter, Assistant Professor, Florida Institute of Technology
Dr. Stephen Rice, Associate Professor, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University
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ESASI SEMINAR 2017 - LJUBLJANA, SLOVENIA
The European Society of Air Safety Investigators (ESASI) will hold their annual seminar in Ljubljana,
Slovenia, on the 19 and 20 April 2017. Further details, and previous seminar programmes, can be found
at www.esasi.eu .
ESASI would welcome proposals for presentations to be given during the 2017 seminar, which should last
a maximum of 25 minutes with a further 5 minutes for questions. Presentations should address issues
relating to air safety investigations; particular areas of interest are:
* challenges faced by air safety investigators,
* the environment, and culture, that air safety investigators operate in,
* practical experience of applying investigation techniques,
* new techniques to aid the investigation,
* topical case studies.
Details of proposed presentations should be sent to Brian McDermid, by 31 January 2017, at
presentations@esasi.eu. The ESASI committee will select the presentations in early February 2017.
Curt Lewis